Top Orchid

BOURNEMOUTH ORCHID SOCIETY

BOURNEMOUTH

ORCHID SOCIETY

Autumn 2010

2

Top Orchid

2010

Sat 25 Sept Autumn Show Beaufort Community Centre, Southbourne

Fri 29 Oct Ian Parsons Phalaenopsis

Fri 26 Nov Maren Talbot Pleiones & their Cultivation (Heritage Orchids)

Sat 11 Dec * Christmas Lunch Marsham Court Hotel (1 pm)

* Members may sell plants only at these meetings

Front Cover: Cattleya schilleriana v. regnellii

All Photographs by Allan Burdis unless otherwise stated.

All photographs and articles are the copyright of the Bournemouth Orchid Society and their authors, andshould not be reproduced without permission.

Programme

2011

Fri 28 Jan * Carol Norman Arranging Orchid Flowers

Sat 26 Feb Spring Show Allendale Centre, Wimborne Minster BH21 1AS

Sat 19 Mar Coach Outing RHS London Orchid Show

Fri 25 Mar * Plant Clinic & Brains Trust

Fri 29 Apr * Ted Croot Story of Orchids at Chatsworth

Fri 27 May * Annual General Meeting followed by Plant Auction

Fri 24 June * Colin Carter Setting Up Your Greenhouse

Sun 17 July * Garden Party Hosted by Terry and Gerry Eve; 2.30 p.m. 16, Barton Way, Barton-on-Sea, BH25 7JN

Fri 26 Aug * David Ridgeway Cypripediums of China

Sat 24 Sept Autumn Show Barrington Theatre, Ferndown, BH22 9TH

3

Top Orchid

Allan Burdis

or the first time as far as I can remember I was not able toattend one of our Members’ Shows as I had to go to a wed-ding, thankfully not mine! As it turned out the wedding was

an enjoyable affair with lots of sunshine to keep us warm but mythoughts often turned to the Show, wondering how it was goingand hoping someone had remembered to take a few photos ofwinning plants for Top Orchid. Luckily Colin Carter had done justthat and they are printed on page 8.It was particularly pleasing to see one of our newer members win-ning awards off the “Big Boys”, so congratulation to ChristineJarvis for her lovely Phalaenopsis amabilis which took two tro-phies. (See page 8)

Now the clocks have gone back it feels like winter is just aroundthe corner and the signs are we are due for another hard one.This should be a warning to us all to be ready for heating failuresand have alternative heaters available to deploy at a momentsnotice (usually at 2.00 o’clock in the morning!).

Thanks to all contributors of this edition.

If anyone is desperate to write something for the next issue ofTop Orchid the deadline is March 11th 2011.

F

4

Top Orchid

BOURNEMOUTH ORCHID SOCIETY AUTUMN SHOW 25th September 2010

TROPHY WINNERS

ECHO CUPMr Geoff Hands Vanda coerulea

SPECIES TROPHYMr Geoff Hands Vanda coerulea

DORSET CUPDr Derek Copley Odontoglossum bictoniense album

DENDROBIUM CUPMr Geoff Hands Dendrobium hercoglossum

SOLENT SHIELDMr Geoff Hands 15 points

BOB WRIGHT CENTENARY CUPMr Alan Sapsard Phragmipedium Eric Young

NEW FOREST CUPMr Colin Carter Holcoglossum kimballianum Coelogyne odorarti Calanthe rosea

RINGWOOD CUPMr Alan Sapsard Brassolaelia Yellow Bird

PRIORY CUPMrs Christine Jarvis Phalaenopsis amabilis

SLIPPER CUPMr Alan Sapsard Phragmipedium Eric Young

HAMTUN TROPHYMr Alan Sapsard Dracula cordobea

5

Top Orchid

DAVE CHERRY MEMORIAL CUPMrs Christine Jarvis Phalaenopsis amabilis

LEO PALMER MEMORIAL BOWLDr Derek Copley Odontoglossum bictoniense album

CLASS WINNERS

CLASS 1: CYMBIDIUM SPECIES AND HYBRIDS No entries in this class

CLASS 2: PAPHIOPEDILUM AND PHRAGMIPEDIUM HYBRIDS 1. Mr Alan Sapsard Phragmipedium Eric Young 2. Mr Colin Carter Paphiopedilum Harold Koopowitz 3. Mr Mike Powell Phragmipedium Andean Fire

CLASS 3: PAPHIOPEDILUM AND PHRAGMIPEDIUM SPECIES No entries in this class

CLASS 4: SPECIES AND HYBRID ONCIDINAE 1. Dr Derek Copley Lemboglossum bictoniense album 2. Mr Geoff Hands Adaglossum Summit ‘Frenchtown’

CLASS 5: DENDROBIUM SPECIES AND HYBRIDS 1. Mr Geoff Hands Dendrobium hercoglossum

CLASS 6: CATTLEYA ALLIANCE SPECIES AND HYBRIDS 1. Mr Alan Sapsard Brassolaelia Yellow Bird 2. Mr John James Cattleya White Cinderella 3. Mr Geoff Hands Cattleya Hawaiian Wedding Song ‘Virgin’

CLASS 7: PHALAENOPSIS SPECIES AND HYBRIDS 1. Mr Eric Groome Phalaenopsis hybrid 2. Mrs Christine Carter Phalaenopsis Queen of Hearts 3. Mrs Pat Marshall Doritaenopsis Minho Princess

CLASS 8: ANY OTHER HYBRID 1. Mr Geoff Hands Vanda Robert Delight 2. Mr John James Miltonia Sunset x Xanthina 3. Mr Nick Fry Cirrhopetalum Elizabeth Ann

6

Top Orchid

CLASS 9: ANY OTHER SPECIES 1. Mr Geoff Hands Vanda coerulea

2. Mr Colin Carter Holcoglossum kimballianum

3. Mr Alan Sapsard Dracula cordobea

CLASS 10: A GROUP OF THREE SPECIES 1. Mr Colin Carter Holcoglossum kimballianum Coelogyne odorarti Calanthe rosea

2. Mrs Christine Carter Phalaenopsis lindenii Phalaenopsis cornu-cervi Phalaenopsis equestris alba

3. Mr Alan Sapsard Aerangis species Gastrochilus japonicus Podangis dactyloceras

CLASS 11: A GROUP OF THREE HYBRIDS 1. Mr Alan Sapsard Doritaenopsis cultivar Cattleya Elizabeth Fulton Phragmipedium Lacotte

2. Mr Geoff Hands Brassolaeliocattleya Nuance ‘Elegie’ Vanda Cambria ‘Plush’ Vanda Fuchs’ Delight ‘Pink’

CLASS 12: A GROUP OF THREE SPECIES AND HYBRIDS MIXED 1 Mr Colin Carter Holcoglossum kimballianum Paphiopedilum In Charm Handel Phragmipedium Schroederae

2. Mrs Christine Carter Phalaenopsis eqestris alba Phalaenopsis Jane McHenry x Temple Cloud Phalaenopsis amboinensis

3. Mr Geoff Hands Gongora luteola x Miltocidium No-name Laeliocattleya Miva Royal ‘Chocolate Delice’

7

Top Orchid

CLASS 13: NOVICE CLASS 1. Mrs Christine Jarvis Phalaenopsis amabilis 2. Mr Gerry Eve Phalaenopsis hybrid 3. Mr Chris Broomfield Stenoglottis longifolia

CLASS 14: ONE CUT ORCHID SPIKE 1. Mrs Pat Marshall 2. Dr Derek Copley

CLASS 15: ONE WINDOWSILL ORCHID 1. Mrs Jane Bygrave Phalaenopsis Everspring x Doritaenopsis TaisucoPixie 2. Mrs Christine Carter Phalaenopsis Black Diamond 3. Mr Eric Groome Phalaenopsis hybrid

AWARDS FOR CULTURAL EXCELLENCE

Mr Colin Carter Holcoglossum kimballianum

Mr Colin Carter Phragmipedium schroederae

Mrs Christine Carter Phalaenopsis Black Diamond

Mrs Christine Jarvis Phalaenopsis amabilis

Mr Alan Sapsard Phragmipedium Eric Young

Mr Geoff Hands Vanda Robert Delight’Kultana’s Dark Red

8

Top Orchid

Show Picture Gallery

Photos by Colin Carter

PRIORY CUP &DAVE CHERRY MEMORIAL CUP

Christine JarvisPhalaenopsis amabilis

ECHO CUP & SPECIES TROPHYGeoff Hands

Vanda coerulea

9

Top Orchid

SHOW SECRETARY’S REPORT

his was another enjoyable show, with 15 members entering a total of61 plants. Although the number of plants appears small, the quality ofplants was very high and a number were quite large, so that the

Show Table was a quality one. However the judges had a number of com-ments to make about sloppy staking. In a number of classes this led toplants losing place to better presented rivals. The rule about staking is‘less is more’. The aim of staking is to support and protect the flower spikeand enhance the appearance of the plant. It should be as unobtrusive aspossible, and the minimum necessary. Like corsetry, it should not make itspresence unduly known! Stakes should be tied neatly to the spike with(ideally) raffia or plastic ties, not lashed to the stake like a heretic with gar-den twine or clamped with dragonflies. Perhaps we need to have an ob-ject lesson on presentation at our next Brain’s Trust. Overall however thestandard of staking was good, and didn’t detract from the quality of the Ta-ble. There was one incident of mealy bug, fortunately found after the judg-ing and swiftly dispatched. Please, when preparing for a show, check yourplants for unwelcome guests. If such are found during judging , the plantwill not be judged and may have to be removed from the show table.The good weather brought a better attendance than the last Autumn Showwith 179 paying members of the public, up 22 from last year. Attendancewas steady throughout the duration of the show, so that the hall alwayslooked to be full. This meant that visitors could examine and photographthe plants without being crowded and the trade stands were able to dosteady business without being crowded out. This makes for a pleasanterand more relaxed show. The event was overshadowed by news of the sad death of Brian Ritter-shausen, of Burnham Nurseries. He had been ill for some time, and hisdeath was not unexpected, but a sad event for all that. Our sympathy andthoughts are with his family. In the event it was very good of Arthur tostand in for Sara, pulling out of the East Midlands OS Autumn Show to doso. The relationship between our Society and Burnham Nurseries is a veryclose one, practically symbiotic, as Brian and Keith Andrew our Presidentwere lifelong friends. It would have been unthinkable that they should notattend our show and we are grateful for their consideration. In recognitionof our special relationship with Burnham's our Society will be making a do-nation to ‘Orchid’ a charity dealing with male cancers. A sympathy cardwas signed by a number of members and given to Arthur at the show, tobe given to the family.

T

10

Top Orchid

A new trophy was unveiled at the show to commemorate one of our ownwho has passed on. The Leo Palmer Memorial Bowl will be awarded to thegrower of the best New World Orchid- i.e. one from Australia, New Zea-land and the Americas. It was won by our Chairman Derek Copley for hisLemboglossum bictoniense album, so well done Derek!Among orchids of note were a very fine Vanda coerulea, shown by GeoffHands, Derek Copley’s Lemboglossum, Colin Carter’s Holcoglossum,(hello, Glossums!) and Allan Sapsard's Dracula cordobea, which arrivedand departed in a plastic bag to stop it drying out. Draculas are not easy togrow, but Alan has form in this respect and is a skilful grower of these diffi-cult orchids. The novice section was again, pleasingly well contested butthe runaway winner was Christine Jarvis with an enormous Phalaenopsisamabilis. As I said earlier this was another enjoyable Show with an improved at-tendance, but many people helped to make it so. Thanks go to Colin andChristine Carter for setting up the non-competitive display, to Chris Broom-field for running the tombola together with my wife Rosemary, to Terry andGerry Eve for running the Raffle, to Dave Walters for setting up the back-drop for the non-competitive display and for taking it down again, to DerekCopley for manning the potting demo single-handed, to Ken for helping toset up and manning the door and to anyone else I have forgotten to helpedto run the Show. And finally a thank you to all those members who enteredplants, to make Your Show the success it was.

This will be our last show at the Beaufort Centre. Our next Show will be atthe Allendale Centre in Wimborne on Saturday 26th February 2011.

Mike Powell

As you are all aware our next Spring Show on February 26th 2011will be at the Allendale Centre, Wimborne Minster BH21 1AS

Please remember to tell your family and friends so they do not go tothe wrong venue. It is most important we all do our bit to advertise our

shows and make them a success.

Spring Show

11

Top Orchid

CATTLEYAS Mike Armstrong

20th August 2010

n Friday 20th August Bournemouth Orchid Society welcomed Mike Arm-strong of Mikandra Orchids, and his wife Sandra. We have had a visitfrom Mike before, and are always honoured to receive him, as he is one

of the finest amateur growers of Cattleyas in the country. By trade Mike wasa marine engineer in the Merchant Navy, and took up orchid growing in theearly 80s. In 1989 he founded Mikandra Orchids. He holds the National Collec-tion of Guarianthe. He is an enthusiastic hybridiser of Cattleyas and an ex-tremely skilled photographer.Mike started with a little history. The genus was ‘discovered’ in 1818 whenWilliam Swainson sent some plants to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens who inturn sent some on to an enthusiastic plant collector called William Cattley.When they flowered in 1821 they were described by John Lindley who placedthem in a new genus Cattleya, named after Cattley. Swainson incidentallyomitted to tell anyone where he had found his plants and the species, C. labia-ta, was not rediscovered for another seventy years. It was a miracle that theyflowered at all as the contemporary wisdom dictated that they be kept in stovehouse conditions. It was thirty years before people worked out how to growCattleyas successfully,. By then in 1856 the first hybrid had been made byJohn Dominy of Veitches Nursery.And so to culture. Mike made the point that every Cattleya species had itsown needs and conditions, and that no two species were exactly alike. He wasalso enthusiastic about using the Internet to find out about the culture of indi-vidual species.Cattleya habitats range from sea level to about 4000 ft. Those growing at sealevel need warmth, high light levels to initiate flowers and much moisture at theroots. They would be constantly in growth. Maintain a minimum night temper-ature of 15 deg C rising by 5-6 deg C during the day. Plants should not be al-lowed to become completely dry in the pot and should be kept evenly moist.Humidity could vary from 30% up to 80- 90% after damping down. The use oSpanish moss to maintain humidity was recommended.Montane species need an extended dry rest period, but always with high hu-midity to stop the plant desiccating. Mikes compost of choice was bark. Healso advocated opening the pots up by cutting holes in the pot to allow lightand air to reach the roots. A useful tip and one applicable to all orchids, notjust Cattleyas, was to give a flush of clear water a couple of hours or so afterfeeding. This would stop the roots being burned by a build up of salts from un-used fertiliser. Apparently the take-up period for orchid fertiliser is a short oneand orchid roots stop taking up feed quite soon after it is made available tothem.

O

12

Top Orchid

With regard to feeding, Mike experiments with various combinations of feedbut remembers that Orchids need very little phosphorus, nitrogen as neces-sary and as much potassium as available in the feed. Feed strength should bevaried according to the season, with less being given in winter and more insummer. He adds humic and fulvic acid to his feed to help the take up of nutri-ents. He always uses rain water, aiming to achieve a PH of 6.Mike them mentioned the dreaded ‘V’ word. However he was reassuring aboutthis and stated that not every colour break or misshapen flower was due to avirus. Stress could also cause these things to happen. Consistent good cul-ture, regular and accurate watering and strict adherence to anti cross-contam-ination procedures would eliminate problems. In particular always disinfectingimplements between plants, preferably by heat, and the ruthless elimination ofpests that vector viruses would largely solve the problem. Pests could beeliminated by using contact insecticides based on fish or vegetable oil. Thesework by smothering the pests and are equally effective on eggs, larvae andadults, and if correctly and thoroughly applied leave no survivors – but thor-ough application is essential. The use of sticky pads to collect the highly mo-bile larval stages of scale was also recommended as was the use of highpressure sprays to physically dislodge the unwelcome visitors. Scale, espe-cially soft scale, was identified as the main Cattleya pest.Mike then embarked on an enormously detailed and lengthy slide show, de-scribing the Cattleya species and hybrids in his collection. The number of vari-ants and colour forms was literally mind boggling and there is space for only atiny fraction of what we were shown. The quality of slides was without excep-tion superb, reflecting Mike’s talents as a plant portrait artist, and the qualityof plants was mouth-watering.Of the dozens of plants shown a few stood out for me:Cattleya mossiae a large classic Cattleya flowering in early to late summerhas a gorgeous scent. It was one of the last species to survive in commercialproduction for corsages. It is purple with a large frilly lip.Cattleya labiata another classic, flowers in the autumn. It comes in shades ofrose pink, again with a darker, frilly lip.Cattleya trianae has a superb shape and is widely used in breeding. It comesin paler shades with dark forms being unusual and highly sought after.Mike deserves recognition for being able to grow such an enormous range ofspecies. Us lesser mortals might be advised to find species or hybrids thatsuit our conditions and concentrate on growing them well.The talk ended with a gracious and enthusiastically supported vote of thanks.

Mike Powell

13

Top Orchid

C. gaskelliana

C. schroederae C. labiata

C. walkeriana C. intermedia V. aquinii

C. guttata

14

Top Orchid

PhalaenopsisIan Parsons

Friday 29th October 2010

ur Programme secretary, Roger Russell has a difficulttask trying to find speakers for our monthly meetingsand part of this task involves finding a balance be-tween satisfying the beginner and experienced grow-

er. On rare occasions speakers are able to satisfy both but there are timeswhen this is not possible.This was a talk for the more experienced orchid grower and some membersmight have found the introduction and explanation of the genus a bit boring butit was full of interesting data.Ian has been growing orchids for 40 years and was introduced to the genus in1970, growing some of the best Phalaenopsis in his office on top of the filingcabinet. He now grows approximately twenty Phalaenopsis species in hisgreenhouse.Apparently they are not easy to find in the wild and even local people in thoseregions do not know the species and their locations. Many are very localisedand rare.There are approximately fifty species but this varies depending on opinion andnew discoveries.There distribution is S.E. Asia, Indonesia, Philippines and N. Australia(majority found north of the equator). Most inhabit lowland tropical rain forest.Ian recommends Eric A. Christenson’s book ‘Phalaenopsis a Monograph’,which is now the “bible” on this genus, if you have a spare £250!Ian went through the genus in detail explaining sub-genus, section and thespecies, which was illustrated with lovely photos.This was a very interesting talk, valuable to any BOC orchid judge and trainee,which the Bournemouth Orchid Society has several, but also to anyone inter-ested in this most popular orchid.

O

7P. lowii

See page 21-22 for more detailsof this most interesting and

delightful species

15

Top Orchid

A selection of species

P. parishiiP. violacea

P. mannii

P. philippinensis P. schilleriana

P. sanderianum

1 2

3

4

5

Photos 4 - 7 by Colin Carter

6

16

Top Orchid

lthough my main interest is Paphiopedilums I also grow a few Phrag-mipediums, mainly species with a couple of choice hybrids thrown infor good measure. I would love to

grow more but unfortunately they take upfar too much space and I need as muchroom as possible for all the seedlings I de-flask each year.I regularly produce pods on any worthwhilespecies I have available and back in No-vember 1999 I selfed a good cultivar I haveof P. caudatum v. warscewiczianum (P.Popowii?). The seedlings were deflasked inJune 2001 and grew on very slowly buteventually a batch of six decided to flowerthis summer within a few weeks of one an-other. It just so happens the mother plantalso flowered with two spikes, each bearingtwo flowers and it was interesting to com-pare the seedlings to this plant. They allshowed the same characteristics of thisvariety with the dark maroon coloured lip

and darkerpetals. Theflowers were slightly smaller but this would beexpected on plants flowering for the first time.I like to grow this species in a water retainingcompost, that still drains well, which I keep alittle drier than most other Phrags. As the flow-ers open and the petals lengthen I try to raisethe pots up to allow them to develop fully. Thegeneral opinion is that if the petals touch a hardsurface they stop growing and therefore do notreach their maximum length.

A

Phragmipedium caudatum v. WarscewiczianumAn orchid not to be sniffed at!

P. caudatum ‘Highcliffe Castle’

P. caudatum close-up

17

Top Orchid

Although I noticed when I overlook some flowers, where the petals had coiledup on the bench, did continued to grow when raised up again. Perhaps thepetals would have reached a longer length if their development had not beeninterrupted. As these petals can reach lengths of up to a meter it is easier ifplants are suspended from the greenhouse roof to help gravity do its job andallow the petals to grow clear of any obstructions.One day this summer, as I was watering a bench of Paphs, I became awareof a pungent odour, best described as stale urine, which grew stronger as Iprogressed along the bench. Don’t ask me how I know what stale urinesmells like - that’s another story!As I watered, I looked around at the various pots to see if I could spot aplant which might be the culprit, ignoring slipper orchids as those with anyperfume are few, such as P. delenatii, sweetly exquisite and malipoense,very fruity, like raspberries. I was expecting to come across a Bulbophyllumor perhaps a Masdevallia which are notorious for bearing fantastic flowerswhich stink of rotting meat, but there were no Bulbophyllums in flower andthe Masdevallias are all housed in the cool section at the other end of thegreenhouse and even some of the worse stinkers could not waft that far.As I moved along, the odour grew stronger, until eventually I nudged againstthe flowering mother plant of Phrag. caudatum suspended from the roof andrealised I had discovered the culprit.(Fig. 1)Until now I had not realised this species had a scent, let alone one so strongand powerful and having made this discovery the task of watering was post-poned and my attention was given to investigating the odour in more detail.The first thing I did was to raise my head and push my nose into the centreof the flower and sniff cautiously, expecting to get the full impact of theodour, but to my surprise it was not that strong. Thinking I had not posi-tioned my nose correctly I sniffed several more times, moving over the cen-tre of the flower in an effort to pinpoint its strongest location but withoutsuccess. Confused, I moved back, lowering my head slightly to gaze at thelong petals and was again aware of the familiar strong odour. I moved inonce more, this time to sniff the twisted petals and was immediately“rewarded” with the full impact of the odour - It was the long petals that weregiving off the strongest scent!Further investigation revealed the scent was evident from the tips of the pet-als, getting stronger in the middle and fading gradually to the top. I found iteasier to catch the odour if I held a cupped hand behind a petal as I movedup (see Fig. 2). By chance I also had in flower Phragmipedium wallisii whichalso had an odour but not as strong as P. caudatum and I found it difficult toconfirm if it followed the same pattern as P. caudatum. Although I did con-firm these findings on several of the flowering P. caudatum seedlings.

18

Top Orchid

Fig 1 Fig 2

Cupping my hand around the petals enabledme to detect the odour more clearly.

Hanging P. caudatum from the greenhouseroof enables the petals to extend

without hindrance.

Assuming stale urine is an accurate impression of the odour then why shouldthis be advantageous to the orchid?Many insects are attracted to things such as animal dung, rotting meat andurine. Insects lay their eggs on dung and rotting meat to feed hatching mag-gots. Urine attracts insects due to the salts available, butterflies are oftenseen taking advantage of these areas.Female insect species produce chemical attractants (pheromones) to luremales of the same species. Surprisingly, one of these chemicals employedby many insect species is identical to one secreted in the urine of femaleAsian elephants before ovulation. (Luckily there are no elephants roamingthe wilds of Dorset!).Urine is obviously a strong chemical attractant to animals and this would bea useful tool for plants to attract a pollinator.For years people have speculated over the long petals of P. caudatum, sug-gesting they are devices to enable a specific pollinator to reach the repro-ductive parts of the flower. This pollinator has never been identified butperhaps the ‘scented’ petals are a lure to guide it to the centre of the flower.To my nose the strength of the scent seemed to decrease up towards thecentre of the flower, but perhaps its formulae changed and my senses werenot able to detect this.This odour did not attract any British insect species and therefore it may notbe a “urine” type attractant and probably more specific to a particular insectpollinator, as most orchid flowers are designed for. I cannot say if my obser-vations have anything to do with the pollination of P. caudatum but I wouldbe interested if anyone else has noted this phenomenon.

19

Top Orchid

rian Rittershausen who departed this world on the 23rd

September 2010 was a founder member of

Bournemouth Orchid Society. He and his father attend-

ed the inaugural meeting in 1959, I also attended with the

then owner of Dorset Orchids in Plush.

This was not the first time I had met Brian as I had made a visit to Burnham

Nurseries to collect my first Cymbidium seedlings back in 1949. Soon Bri-

an and I got to know each other a lot more when we started to exhibit our

nurseries stock at orchid shows around the country from the mid 50s.

Brian and I were at this point in time the only two young trade growers since

the war, our friendship grew as the years went by to the extent that Brian was

my best man in 1960 when Janis and I were Married. The date was the 19th

of March around the time BOGA had its shows in London, this was the only

time he and I did not attend.

By the time of the mid 60s we decided it was time we should visit some of

out clients and shows abroad particularly with California in mind and also

we had been invited to give talks to a number of societies.

Travelling so many miles together I soon realized what a very shrewd and hard

working businessman Brian was, I for one learnt a great deal from him, he real-

ly did have so many qualities with a willingness to help anyone who sought his

advice.

Personally I will miss him like he was a second brother and I know the

orchid world has lost a great friend and orchid fellow.

Keith Andrew

Obituary

BBrian Rittershausen 1936-2010

20

Top Orchid

Science for Orchid Growers

Green roots and transparent pots

The first in an occasional series

t is not essential to grow Phalaenopsis in transparent pots, althoughit is very convenient to do this, because of the ability to see whenthey need watering again by observing the green-ness or other-

wise, of the roots.Conversely, it is also possible, and useful too, to grow any other epi-phytic orchid in a transparent pot. By the very nature of things, epi-phytes tend to have their roots exposed to the light , so won’t come toany harm this way. Whilst few orchids have roots so conveniently pro-vided with only a thin layer of velamen so that root moisture shows upso well, it is still good with other genera to be able to see the root condi-tion and activity without having to knock the plant out of the pot.

Transparent pots are not used to allow the roots to photosynthesise.Roots can’t do this. Photosynthesis requires a continuous supply ofcarbon dioxide into the cells containing the active chlorophyll via thestomata in the leaves – tiny “holes” present at a rate of about 4-5000per square centimetre of leaf - and roots don’t have stomata. Moreo-ver, the plant cannot transport carbon dioxide in its vascular system, orstore it in any way – until the CO2 has been processed in the leaves.

Geoff Hands

I

Paph. root action ina transparent pot.The outer conven-tional plastic potremoved for clarity.

21

Top Orchid

Phalaenopsis lowiifter filling all the windowsills in the housewith the larger growing Phalaenopsis Iran out of room, so to be able to continue

expanding my collection I turned to the smallergrowing Phalaenopsis species.One of the very unusual species I have in flowerat the present is Phalaenopsis lowii.Thought to be extinct in the wild it was rediscov-ered in 1996 in Burma and later in Thailand.This is a warm growing miniature epiphyte orsometimes lithophyte orchid fromMyanmar(Burma) & Thailand and is a smallleafed plant with dark green foliage about 7 to 10 cm long and 2.5 cm wide.Flowering in late Summer to Autumn, the flower stalk is very thin and lengthensto about 60 cm carrying the flowers at the end.Flowers are fragrant about 5 cm across with very delicate pinkish texture andan extremely long beak - like rostellum (where its common name, Beak Orchid,originates).Growing in its natural habitat it can produce many flowers on several inflores-cence and is likely to experience a long drought period which can cause it toshed its leaves.Best grown warm and in high humidity when it keeps it leaves.I bought this plant at our Autumn show in 2007 from Ratcliffe Orchids when itwas just showing signs of the start of a flower spike.I placed this plant on the north facing kitchen windowsill where it grew well. Theinflorescence extended and flowers started to form but duly aborted.The same thing happened in 2008 so I came to the conclusion that high humid-ity was necessary to form the flowers.The plant was repotted into a 8 cm pot in a mixture of medium and fine fir barkwith a little added Perlite.In 2009 as the inflorescence started to appear I placed it into a small hangingbasket and secreted it into Colin’s warm section of his greenhouse, hanging ithigh in the roof over his slipper orchids as I knew he would not see it there forages.Because this area has a very high humidity I only needed to spray or waterevery couple of weeks and fed the same as all my other orchids.The flowers formed perfectly and my secret was out, I have negotiated to keepit in this position where it has flowered successfully again this year and is evengrowing a new growth.I understand that an all white variety has emerged from Thailand so I will be onthe look out for that.

Christine Carter

A

22

Top Orchid

Phalaenopsis lowii

Photos 1 & 2 show the unusual lip andbeak-like structure of the column.

Photos 3 & 4 give a goodidea of the dimensions andform of the plant.

1 2

3

4Photos by Colin Carter

23

Top Orchid

Life President Keith Andrew Esq.

Life Vice - Presidents Graham Smith & Allan Burdis

OfficersChairman Dr. Derek Copley

Vice - Chairman Ken Griffiths

Hon. SecretaryKen GriffithsTally House

Hawthorn RoadSouth Bockhampton

ChristchurchDorset

Tel. 01425 672492

Hon. TreasurerJohn James

18 School LaneSt Ives

RingwoodBH24 2PF

Tel. 01425 479223

Show Secretary Mike Powell Tel. 01794 513847

Hon-Librarian Dave Longman

Committee Glen Jamieson, Colin Carter, Roger Russell (Programme Secretary) Nick Fry (Publicity)

Top Orchid EditorAllan Burdis

31 Heath RoadWalkford

ChristchurchDorset

BH23 5RH

Tel. 01425 275251 E-mail : allanburdis@hotmail.com

24

Top Orchid